Charging box



NOV. 7, 1961 GATHMANN ET AL 3,007,587

CHARGING BOX Filed June 17, 1959 M 0 Ju mw A H/ N R AB .3 E m R v Mw v m.l lfi v M an w n mam Attorney United tates Patent CHARGING BOX Mark H.Gathmann, Chicago, and John F. OBrien, Midlothian, Ill., assignors toUnited States Steel Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey Filed June17, 1959, Ser. No. 820,893 2 Claims. (Cl. 214-26) This invention relatesto a charging box and is particularly directed to boxes for introducingraw or scrap material into an open hearth furnace. Such boxes are incommon use and are generally either cast or fabricated from steelplates. Regardless of how the boxes are made it is found that they willvary in weight. Boxes of the same design may vary as much as eightypounds. In introducing scrape or cold metal into the open hearth theboxes are loaded onto a wheeled car and the full boxes are weighed asthey pass over a scale platform. In calculating the weight of thecharge, the amount subtracted for the weight of the boxes is anarbitrary amount which may vary considerably from the actual weight ofthe box. Thus the actual weight of the charge may be much different thanthe calculated weight. This has many adverse results since theefficiency of the metal refining operation cannot be accuratelycalculated and the relationship between the cold charge and the hot pigiron is difierent than that desired.

It is therefore an object of our invention toprovide open hearthcharging boxes having substantially uniform weights.

This and other objects will be more apparent after referring to thefollowing specification and attached drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a bottom plan view of the charging box of our invention;

FIGURE 2 is a view taken on the line II-II of FIG- URE l; and

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the charging box.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, reference numeral 2indicates the charging box of our invention. The box is open at its topand has side walls 4 and 6, end walls 8 and 10 and base 12. The end wall10 is provided with an attachment 14 for receiving the usual peel head16. The construction so far described is that ordinarily provided inopen hearth charging boxes and the attachment 14 and peel head 16 may beof any suitable type such as shown in Allison Patent No. 1,771,761,Mursch Patent No. 2,314,729 and Forsythe Patent No. 2,347,899. Accordingto our invention the base 12 is provided with a groove 18 of substantialheight extending upwardly from the bottom side thereof. The groove 18 ispreferably on the longitudinal center line of the box as shown.

In the design and manufacture of the charging box, the maximum weight ofthe box is calculated. The boxes after casting or fabrication areindividually weighed and an insert 20, such as a steel bar, ofsuflicient weight to bring the total weight of each box to the maximumcalculated weight is welded to the base 12 in the groove 18. The insert20 is shown as having a half round shape, but the shape may vary as longas the thickness of the insert is such that it can be received entirelywithin the groove 18. The groove or corrugation 18, in addition toserving as the receptacle for the insert 20, acts to increase therigidity of the base and the addition of the weight of insert 20 at thelongitudinal center of the box increases the stability of the box.

While one embodiment of our invention has been shown and described, itwill be apparent that other adaptations and modifications may be madewithout departing from the scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. A cast elongated open hearth charging box comprising side walls, endwalls, a base, and means on one of said end walls adapted to receive apeel head, said base having a longitudinal central groove of substantialheight extending upwardly from the bottom thereof, said groove beingadapted to receive an insert therein.

2. A cast elongated open hearth charging box comprising side walls, endwalls, a base, means on one of said end walls adapted to receive a peelhead, said base having a longitudinal central groove of substantialheight extending upwardly from the bottom thereof, and an insertfastened in said groove above the bottom of the base adjacent thereto.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,265,076 Larsen Dec. 2, 1941 2,347,899 Forsythe May 2, 1944 2,441,619Dailey May 18, 1949

